Gandhi got to work that
very evening. He drafted a petition to the Legislature and submitted it with
the signature of 500 Indians. The Bill was passed in spite of the petition.
But the Indian cause and the Indian action in support of it, drew public
attention. Gandhi was not overwhelmed by the failure of the petition to
secure redress. He drafted another petition, this time to the Secretary of
State for Colonies in Britain. He secured 10,000 signatures within a
fortnight. Copies were distributed in England as well. Sections of the
British press took sympathetic note of the case that Gandhi presented in the
petition. Gandhi left no stone unturned. He tried to create public opinion
in South Africa, in England, in the Parliament, in the press, among public
personages. He wrote to Dadabhai Naoroji, who was a member of the British
Parliament. He had met Dadabhai once when he was in London. Now he wrote to
Dadabhai asking him to use his great influence to seek redress for the
Indian community in South Africa. He told the doyen of Indian leaders why he
was praying for his help. "I am yet inexperienced and young, and therefore,
quite liable to make mistakes. The responsibility undertaken is quite out of
proportion to my ability. I may mention that I am doing this without any
remuneration. So you will see that I have not taken the matter up, which is
beyond my ability, to enrich myself at the expense of the Indians. I am the
only available person who can handle the question. You will, therefore,
oblige me very greatly if you will kindly direct and guide me and make
necessary suggestions which shall be received as from a father to his
child."
Gandhi's campaign had
its effect. The British government vetoed the Bill passed by the Natal
Legislature. But Natal got round the veto with another Bill. What more, the
Government of Natal decided to impose a poll tax of 3 pounds on all
indentured labourers who wanted to stay back in South Africa without
renewing their indenture agreement.
This was an inhuman
measure, and was meant only to bring pressure on the poor labourer who
earned only 14 shillings a month. Many other restrictions were imposed on
Indians.
Gandhi saw that the
fight would be long and hard. He formed an organization of Indians, and
called it 'The Natal Indian Congress'. He built up the organization with
members who paid a subscription, and with branches and rules for the conduct
of business. He plunged into the task of creating opinion with frequent
articles and letters in journals, memorials, petitions, and meetings of the
Indian community.
But all this took many
months. Gandhi had refused to take remuneration for his public work. But he
had to find money to meet his own expenses. He decided to accept fees for
the legal work for which Indian friends might use his services. To enable
him to practise in the courts, he had to enroll himself. He applied for
registration. His application was opposed by the Law Society, but upheld by
the Supreme Court of Natal. He enrolled himself as an advocate.
The month for which
Gandhi had agreed to stay on had stretched to years, and it looked as though
he would have to spend many more years fighting discrimination in South
Africa. He decided to take leave for six months to go to India and bring his
family with him. He also wanted to use the opportunity to inform the people
and leaders in India about the near slavery that Indian labourers were
reduced to in South Africa, and the indignities that were heaped on all
Indians. He visited the main cities, — Bombay, Poona and Madras. His visit
to Calcutta was cut short by urgent summons from his colleagues in South
Africa. At Bombay, Poona and Madras he met the tallest leaders of the time,
and addressed meetings of opinion makers. Among those whose support he
secured were Sir Pheroze Shah Mehta, Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Gopal
Krishna Gokhale and others.
He received sympathy and
supports everywhere. He described the humiliation of Indians and said that
submission to insults was reconciling with one's own degradation. He urged
public opinion in India to bring pressure on the Indian Government to
protect the honour and dignity of Indian citizens. He urged the Government
of British India to suspend the recruitment of indentured labour if it could
not protect Indian citizens or ameliorate their conditions. He also wrote
and published a booklet on the conditions of Indians in South Africa. He had
stated facts, and that too with his customary moderation…
When Gandhi received the
urgent summons, he decided to cut short his stay in India and return to
South Africa with his family. He and his family boarded the s.s. Courland, a
ship that belonged to Dada Abdullah. Another ship of Abdullah's, the Naderi,
was also sailing at the same time. There were 800 indentured labourers
travelling by these ships. Meanwhile, the white population of Natal was in a
state of mad fury. They had been infuriated by a news agency report that
Gandhi had published a scurrilous and hateful leaflet against the whites of
South Africa, and was bringing shiploads of Indian labourers to flood South
Africa. Whites held meetings and declared that they would teach Gandhi a
lesson. The flames of fury were fanned by leaders and officials. Thus, when
the ships arrived at the port, they were not allowed to dock.
They were kept at sea.
Even when they were allowed to dock, the ships were quarantined, and
passengers were not allowed to disembark. Agents of the white infuriated men
were waiting at the dock to deal with Gandhi. After 23 days of quarantine,
on the 13th of May, 1897, the passengers were allowed to disembark. There
were fears about Gandhi and his family. The family managed to leave and
reach the house of Parsi Rustomji safely. Gandhi received a message from
Mr.Escombe, the Attorney General, warning him about the mood of the whites.
He asked Gandhi to wait till night-fall, and leave the ship after darkness
had fallen. Gandhi had nearly decided to accept Escombe's advice when he
received a message from Mr. Laughton, the advocate of Dada Abdullah advising
him against accepting Escombe's suggestion, and informing him that he
himself was going over to the ship to accompany Gandhi.
Gandhi left the ship and
walked down with Laughton, with the intention of walking to the house of his
colleague, Parsi Rustomji. Kasturba and the family had already reached the
house. Soon after Gandhi and Laughton set out, those who were holding vigil
spotted Gandhi by his turban. Alerted by them, a crowd collected and moved
menacingly towards Gandhi. Laughton tried to hail a rickshaw to take them to
the house. The rickshaw puller was scared away. The crowd started closing in
on Gandhi. In the pushing and pulling, Laughton got separated from Gandhi.
Now the crowd began to rain blows, and throw stones. They were intent on
lynching Gandhi. Gandhi walked on. He was hit by a rain of stones. He was
injured, and started bleeding profusely. Swathed in blood, he was still
hauling himself forward when he got dizzy and swooned. The crowd of lynchers
and persecutors was in hot pursuit. Gandhi held on to the railings on the
side of the road and kept crawling while more stones landed on his bleeding
body. It is difficult to say what would have happened if, at that crucial
moment, Mrs. Alexander, the wife of the Police Superintendent had not
chanced to come from the opposite direction. She was a white woman, and much
respected in the community. Seeing Gandhi bleeding and crawling with
tormentors in hot pursuit, she went to Gandhi, opened her parasol to protect
him from the stones, and chastised the crowd. In the meanwhile, Alexander,
the Police Superintendent himself arrived on the scene with a posse of
Police and rescued Gandhi, and escorted him to Parsi Rustomji's house.
Hearing that Gandhi had
reached Rustomji's house, a crowd collected there, asking that Gandhi be
handed over to them. They threatened to burn the house down, along with all
the inmates, if Gandhi was not handed over. The Police Superintendent acted
with great tact in holding the crowd at bay, and meanwhile persuading Gandhi
to leave through the back door dressed as a policeman, and go to the safety
of the police station.
When the news that white
crowds had attempted to lynch Gandhi and had inflicted injuries on his body
reached London and other capitals of the world, there was widespread
revulsion and sorrow. The Secretary of State for Colonies sent a telegram to
the Government of South Africa asking them to track down and punish the
culprits. The Police Superintendent informed Gandhi of these orders and
asked for his co-operation in identifying the culprits and punishing them.
Gandhi had no bitterness whatsoever. He told the Government that he did not
want the Government to prosecute any of his assailants.
He could perhaps
identify many. But he did not believe in retaliation. It was against his
Dharma. They were the victim's of prejudice, and had to be weaned. There was
neither bitterness nor anger nor hatred in his heart. Moreover, it would
serve no purpose if small fries were prosecuted while those who incited them
went scot free.